Spartan AJ A312
AJ A-312 Was a SPARTAN-III commando of the UNSC Naval Special Warfare Command, attached to Special Warfare Group Three. Initially Apart of Alpha Company he was amongst the early members to be separated from the rest of the Spartan III cadets to form an elite combat team call sign Sigma Team. He would be transferred back to the main company after the team's destruction on their first mission. After a Year with Alpha Company, Spartan A312 would be deployed to one of the Head Hunter units with Spartan A294. Four years later ONI would have him transferred once more to lead the new and highly classified Omega Company of Spartan IIIs until the end of the war. After the war, AJ retired to civilian life. Adopting the last name Thompson, he became a paramedic for New Chicago's Emergency Medical Corps. He worked with them three years until August of 2557 before being asked to join the Spartan IV program along side several of his old squad mates. Biography Childhood AJ was born on the planet Harvest on February 14th 2524. A year later when the Covenant attacked the planet, him and his parents and his cousin escaped the surface and made it to an evacuation ship. His father joined the UNSC military and was later killed in combat during the Harvest Campaign. His mother, aunt, and uncle died later when he was age five during a ship riot. Going into foster care aboard the UNSC ship, ONI picked him up as a candidate for the Spartan III program. Spartan III Program In 2531 AJ was brought to Camp Currahee on Onyx alongside his cousin CJ, to begin training with the 497 other children. Being age 7 he was the oldest student there. During his training AJ excelled at every drill and obstacle. At the end of the first week, he along with fourteen other candidates were taken to a secret location off site of Camp Currahee. It was with these fourteen other Spartans that he would finish his training with. They were told they had shown special skills and would be known as Sigma Team. "As we learned more the tests became harder and we had to keep helping each other along. I asked my teacher, "Isn't this cheating, asking friends for help?" He smiled and said. "Asking for help is the test." I didn't get it right away and just took it as a no, but later I understood what he meant."—From Spartan A312 memoirs on training with Sigma Team. Sigma Team After Completing their years of training and drills at an accelerated rate, Sigma team proved ready for live combat. Unlike the rest of Alpha Company, the Spartan's of Sigma Team were completed in April of 2535. In June that year they underwent the final phase of their transformation into Spartans. The augmentation process of Project CHRYSANTHEMUM. Jericho VII Sigma Team's first live combat mission was to the planet of Jericho VII which was being overran by Covenant forces. The squad of Fourteen Spartans were deployed to an old ship yard to destroy NAV data that was left behind to ensure the Cole Protocol was followed. Though the data was destroyed along with the entire facility, all the Spartans except AJ were killed during the combat. Before his Commander, Collin A301's death, he promoted AJ to the rank of Lieutenant Commander and was ordered to lead the surviving members of Sigma team off the surface and on any further engagements. Return to Alpha Company Following the loss of Sigma Team, Spartan A312 was sent back to Onyx to train with the rest of Alpha Company for a year. Being an experienced fighter and having the advantage of his augmentations installed, he became a squad leader and led fire teams and entire operations through drills. Each operation he ran was deemed a complete success. AJ looked at it a different way, in every operation he would lose Spartans. The instructors would find him pouring over military books and debrief reports of his operations and other operations done while he was gone. It wasn't until CPO Mendez confronted him on the subject that AJ learned the burden of command and the hell of war. "Soldiers will die, you can't control who it comes to and who it doesn't. You can't save everyone. You just have to make sure their deaths were worth something. Victory." Headhunters After a year of training, and Alpha Company graduating in a month, AJ was reassigned to a headhunter unit with his cousin Spartan A294. The Spartans were given the prototype Aegis Class of SPI armor to field test for ONI. For Four years the two operated alongside Alpha company in nearly a half dozen operations including the battle of New Constantinople, under the name "Blades of Lupus". With their skills in fighting the pair were spared from the disastrous Operation: PROMETHEUS. In 2539 the pair were recruited by ONI to investigate and explore a planet beyond human controlled space. The planet was called Chu'ot. After several months in system doing reconnaissance, they learned that one of Chu'ot's moons is called Eayn and happens to be the home world of the Kig Yar. The Spartans returned to UNSC space and were debriefed by ONI. The data the Spartans uncovered would ultimately lead to Operation: SOMME in 2552. In 2540 the pair were once more reassigned, this time to Reach to lead the new Spartan III Omega Company on their first combat operation against the Covenant. Spartan Omega Company In December of 2540 Spartan A312 arrived at the garrison of Omega Company. Though initially met with uncertainty by the other Spartans at this "outsider", their mood quickly changed when they learned they were going to be fighting the Covenant for the first time, and he was the only one in the company who has. Prior to his arrival Spartan A312 was outfitted with the new Semi-Powered Armor Aegis Class. AJ learned that the members of Omega Company were also outfitted with this new heavy armor. Battle of Cyrus On 12/17/2540 the Spartans of Omega Company. descended on the planet to assault a Covenant resource mining operation. It would be the first live operation that Spartan A312 would lead, and the Spartan's first taste of combat against the Covenant. Adopting Spartan Team Saber as his personal squad. The operation was a success with the Covenant mining facility, and resource storage destroyed, along with a CCS-class battlecruiser which was boarded by a Spartan team, though it cost them their lives. The operation had a severe affect on the Spartans as they took many casualties during the fighting. Battle of Terra Nova In preparation for their assault on the Covenant Target Unending Glory, the Spartans of Omega Company. were set to rendezvous with an ODST company that would be supporting them at Terra Nova. However on 10/25/2541, a Covenant fleet entered the system and laid siege to the planet. The Spartans were deployed to the surface to help battle the Covenant in the main cities of Cain and Azerbade. After fifteen days of fighting the Spartans and the ODSTs managed to board a Covenant CCS-class battlecruiser which they would use to infiltrate the defenses of Unending Glory. With the battle turning towards the Covenant's favor the Spartans were forced to flee the planet, leaving it to be glassed. Assault on Unending Glory With their means to infiltrate the Covenant controlled system, the Spartans of Omega company finally came face to face with their original target. The planet sized war factory named Unending Glory. The artificial factory was the size of a small moon and had facilities for building small arms weapons for Covenant ground forces, as well as tanks and armored fighting vehicles to space craft ranging from Corvettes and destroyers to Assault Carriers and Battleships. To melt and heat the materials and minerals needed for making such equipment, the Covenant used the magma from the volcanic planet that the factory held in geosynchronous orbit around. Using massive pipes and reverse gravity, the Covenant transported thousands of gallons of magma up into the ship. This saved the Covenant from having to use power to super heat the metals to form them into the weapons needed for the war effort and provide less strain on the core. Three shielded pipes ran from the factory to the surface of the ashen and volcanic covered world. To destroy the facility, Lieutenant AJ created a two pronged assault. The ODST company led by Major Zahora, would deploy to the surface of the world. Once there they would attack the supply pipes carrying the magma. To do this they simply had to destroy or disable the shield generators that protected the pipes from the super heated materials. With the shields gone, the magma will burn through the pipes in seconds and self destroy them. Once completed the ODSTs will evade the enemy and wait for the Marathon Cruiser the Heimdall to arrive and extract them from the planet. The Spartan IIIs would be tasked with taking out the core itself. Using the cruiser, and faking major damage, the ship was granted permission to dock in the facility's ship repair section. Once boarded, the Spartans would abandon the ship and fight their way through the Covenant defenders and advance towards the core. For three days the Spartans evaded and eliminated Covenant troops. Fighting hall way to hallway, it wasn't long before many of the Spartans were using Covenant weapons. Unfortunately for the Spartans, in addition to being a factory, the Unending Glory was also a Covenant base. With a garrison of 500,000 troops and operations overseen by a minor prophet, the defenses were anything but minor. Never the less the Spartans continued to fight their way through to the core. Evading patrols and containment squads, the fighting was some of the longest and bloodiest the members of Omega would ever experience. After two days of fighting the Spartans finally reached the core. Finishing off the Covenant troops protecting it, they planted the prototype NOVA nuclear device attached to a remote detonator. With their bomb set, the Spartans fought their way to an external hanger bay where they stole a pair of Covenant Phantom drop ships. Cerberus who was monitoring the Spartans' progress through Unending Glory's security system through a link aboard the stolen CCS-Class Battlecruiser, contacted Spartan A312. Cerberus informed AJ of a large group of Covenant troops moving towards the shipyard. He noted that the group left a "Dark Zone" aboard the facility. An area with it's own security network and one that he could not access. As such Cerberus believed this group could be escorting the prophet aboard and trying to evacuate him. AJ signaled Cerberus to overload the cruiser's plasma core. The resulting explosion and chain reaction caused thereafter destroyed the entire ship yard and half of the factory. With the distraction caused by the destruction of their shipyards, the Spartans were able to get to the hangers with less resistance than As the Spartans escaped the Unending Glory, the UNSC Heimdall was already in orbit on the far side of the planet with the survivors of the ODST company on board. As soon as the Phantoms landed, AJ ordered Captain Dravere to make an immediate Slip Space jump as the A.I Cerberus, detonated the NOVA nuclear device. The blast disintegrated the Unending Glory and half the planet alongside it. Though the mission was a success, and Spartan 312 got many of his team through the op. Over 100 Spartans were killed. Aftermath Following the escape of the destruction of Unending Glory, the strike force, now aboard the UNSC Heimdall, returned to the ruins of Nova Terra. In an effort to ease the ODST's mind, the team arrived in orbit to see the status of the planet. With the mission to assist in repulsing any Covenant forces, and to evacuate any survivors left on the surface, they were mortified at the sight of them being too late. The Spartans and ship crew spent two weeks searching through the ruins of the two major cities for survivors. Unfortunately none were found, and the teams were forced to leave the planet and return to Reach for their debriefing. Terra Nova glassed.png|Terra Nova from orbit post glassing. tumblr_nktapuCB5f1svx72no1_1280.jpg|The Glassed surface of the planet. Post-apocalyptic_city.jpg|Glassed center of Downtown Cain. sci-fi-post-apocalyptic-36436.jpg Battle of Tetanus The Spartans of Omega Company. were deployed to Tetanus Research Facility by ONI to receive new hardware upgrades to their armor as well as new weapons and equipment. While there, a Covenant fleet arrived in system and attempted to assault the planet. The Spartans were put on defensive operations while the navy successfully fought off the Covenant ships. With the planet's location discovered, the Spartans were ordered by ONI to assist in the evacuation of the test site and it's destruction. Members of the Spartan company were deployed to the orbital station to place demolition charges. Agarus Expedition Arriving in orbit of Agarus several weeks after the battle of Tetanus and the successful destruction of the ONI research facility. The Spartans of Omega company aboard the UNSC Heimdall and Joined by the UNSC Texas, rendezvoused with the carrier, UNSC Trying Hope and her battle group. The Spartans were sent to Agarus to assist an ONI research team. The planet was never colonized, even though it could support human life. The initial scans by the navy found several large forerunner artifacts as well as hints of a massive treasure hidden somewhere on the surface. To keep the ONI operation hidden, the planet's location was never officially recorded. The Spartans were asked to locate and recover an ONI security team that went missing two months prior. Once on the surface the Spartans were met by an ONI security team who brought them to the outpost the recon team was stationed. The UNSC lost contact with the station a week ago and the twenty two scientists were found missing without any trace when a reaction force went to investigate. The Spartans eventually found the missing ODSTs and discovered that the covenant were on the planet surface. As the Spartans continued to investigate what happened to the scientists and what the covenant are looking for, they locate two more locations of forerunner artifacts and ruins. On the third day planet side, the covenant and UNSC engage in their first real battle. A pair of cloaked covenant ships made themselves known and deployed several hundred ground troops to secure multiple forerunner locations. The covenant also attacked one of the main research stations ONI had set up of which the Spartans intervened to assist the security forces. Leading the defense against the covenant attack, the Spartans are able to repel the assault. With the new objective to destroy the covenant troops as quickly as possible to protect the secrecy of the ONI operation. The Spartans begin to hunt the covenant force's base and take out their star ships. Once the UNSC forces found the locations of the covenant ships holding position in atmosphere, the Spartans and UNSC security forces launch their assault. Engaging them on the ground with light assault vehicles and heavy armor, they occupy the ground defenders. At the same time, in orbit, the Marathon cruisers, UNSC Texas and Heimdall reposition themselves to face towards the planet, while six Charon class frigates, make a low level strike at the ships. While the frigates, an the aircraft from the UNSC Trying Hope, eliminated the shields of covenant ships, the Cruisers in high orbit launched their heavy MAC rounds into their unprotected armor from above. With the factors of gravity working on the rounds, they punched clean through the armor of the corvette and the ORS heavy cruiser. Though the ORS had to take a second barrage before crashing to the surface. The assault was deemed a success with the loss of three frigates as acceptable. With their aircraft free, the UNSC Trying Hope, reassigned its fighters to provide close air support for the ground units. Three days after the repelling of the covenant invaders, several covenant ships entered Agarus space. The eight ships, made up of three CCS Class Battlecruisers, were supported by five SDV Heavy Corvettes. The Covenant forced the UNSC fleet to retreat, but not before destroying the surviving frigates, and the UNSC Trying Hope. Once the space battle was won, the covenant reentered the atmosphere and began systematically glassing the UNSC bases and research outposts. During their investigation of the planet, A-312 and the Spartans learned that hidden within Agarus is a forerunner shield world. It was used as a safe, to store a super weapon designed to target humans specifically during the Human Forerunner war. With the planet being overwhelmed, AJ led the survivors of several attacked bases to a final stronghold that was set on top of one of the suspected entrances into the shield world. When their final stand came near an end, AJ led his Spartans and the few survivors of the security force and science community through the portal and into the shield world beyond. Equipment Semi-Powered Armor During his time with Alpha Company and Sigma Team, Spartan A312 was donned in the Semi-Powered Armor that was standard issue for all Alpha Company Spartans. Aegis Class Semi-Powered Armor In December of 2536, prior to his deployment with Omega Company. , Spartan A312 was issued the new Aegis Class of SPI armor. Given the newest Air Assault class armor, it was the most technologically advanced version of the armor available. The armor is so advanced that when AJ and Omega Company were given the new MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark V armor, the scientists merely added the Shield generator to the Aegis SPI armor. MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Mark V Issued in 2551 to the survivors of Omega Company, the armor was identical to the Aegis Class SPI armor with the add on of the armor's shield generator. MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor (GEN2) Issued to Spartan A312 in 2557 upon his completion into the Spartan-IV ranks. He was given the Mjolnir Powered Assault Armor Intruder Variant.The updated version of the same armor he wore as a Spartan III. MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor/Pathfinder (GEN2) Issued to Spartan A312 in 2560 after the events of Operation: EXCHANGE STUDENT upon AJ's induction as Torrent Squad's commander. Unlike his previous squads, this armor variant was issued to all members of the team. Weapons MA5B Assault RifleThis would be Spartan A312's primary weapon over the course of his career fighting the Covenant during the Human-Covenant war. Its high rate of fire and heavy caliber round made it ideal for fighting heavy shielded enemies. MA5D Assault Rifle The replacement for the MA5B Assault Rifle, this new weapon sported a smaller clip, but better control making it a fearsome weapon even at medium range. MA5K Carbine A smaller and more compact version of the MA5B Assault Rifle, Spartan A-312 commonly used this weapon during his time with Torrent Squad to compliment the many close quarters combats the Spartan team were engaged in. BR55 Battle Rifle A common weapon used by A312 either as a replacement for his MA5 or as a secondary weapon for heavy combat operations. BR85 Battle Rifle This weapon was a common sight with AJ A312 alongside the MA5D assault rifle during the Requiem campaign. With many of the enemies on the surface of the planet so heavily armored and shielded, the extra firepower was drastically needed to survive the brutal fire fights. M6 Magnum Pistol The standard sidearm for all Spartans and UNSC personnel. When Spartan A-312 led Torrent squad it became common practice for him to carry two M6s and dual wield them. M392 Designated Marksman Rifle Used on and off throughout the Human Covenant war, and the second battle for Requiem. AJ's use for the DMR was strictly limited to mission specific parameters. Mostly recon and sniper support operations. M7S Caseless Submachine Gun A common back up weapon used by A312 during his time as a headhunter and in Torrent Squad. Combat Knife Standard Issue close combat weapon. Category:SPARTAN-IIIs Category:Alpha Company Category:Human-Covenant War